Yu-Gi-Oh! AU
by Blade the Cyborg
Summary: An Alternate Universe to the Yu-Gi-Oh anime. Meet three high school girls - Riko, Sakura and Janeiro. They all have complex lives with bullying and death, but when they get involved with duelists and learn of their past lives, things begin to change for them. Friends fighting friends - and not just in a simple card game.
1. Prologue I: Part I

_**Yu-Gi-Oh! AU**_

**~Prologue I Part I~**

"Wow, Sakura, isn't it great here?" Riko asked, admiring the wondrous sites of Egypt. "I mean look at those pyramids – they're huge!"

"And ancient," Sakura added.

"I wonder if anyone lives in them…" Riko wondered.

"Probably not," Sakura responded. "They're just tombs for the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. Throughout this country there's 138 in total."

"Whoa, that many?" Riko gasped. "That's so cool!"

"When we're done buying these souvenirs we're going to go and visit one of them," Sakura stated.

"Cool!" Riko reacted excitably. Just as they had concluded their conversation there, Riko's mum and dad had done buying some small souvenirs and were now heading off towards the pyramid they were to visit, the girls trailing behind.

Riko, being the slow walker she was, walked with her head down just behind Sakura, sort of in her own little world until she felt a hand on her shoulder, causing her to snap out of her little daze and look behind herself. There was an old man in a cloak with a medium length beard, on eye green and the other yellow.

The young girl was frightened at first, gasping quietly in fear as she trembled.

"I've been waiting a long time for you, child," the man began.

"Wh-Who are you…?" Riko questioned shakily.

"That does not matter," the man responded. "I am not important. However, you are."

"Why…?" Riko asked.

The old man handed a golden sceptre with a green jewel to her. "You must take this and protect it. It is an ancient item and there is a spirit sealed inside of it – your past life."

"What's a past life?" Riko queried.

"You'll know in due time," the man simply replied, handing her the sceptre. "Take it, child, and protect it until the time is right."

"Time? What time?" Riko asked him, but he just stood up to his full height. "You'll know," he last said before walking away.

Riko was about to tell him to wait, but heard Sakura shouting for her.

"Riko! Where are you!"

Before any panic could be caused, Riko ran back to her. "Sorry, I-I got lost in the crowd!"

"…What's that?" Sakura asked the younger girl, noticing the sceptre.

"…I found it," Riko lied.

"You didn't steal it, did you?" Sakura questioned suspiciously, putting her hands on her hips.

"No," Riko answered innocently.

Sakura sighed. "Come on, Riko. We don't wanna be late for the tour." The older girl then walked to the two adults, followed by the littler one.

In appearance, Sakura was a blonde haired girl who wore her hair in a short ponytail. She wore a pink beret, pink shorts and a pink maid top with a pink ribbon by the neck, along with a yellow smiley pin. She had a permanent rosy pink blush. She also had lovely brown eyes.

As for Riko, she had black hair in two perky ponytails. She had the same smiley pin and maid top as Sakura, also having a light pink blush and a small amount of freckles near her nose. She had a pink belt which looked like a martial art one and a creased pink skirt. Her skin was pale and she wore a pink hair band and had bright green eyes with an innocent shine, although often she wore a cheeky grin.

Approaching the pyramid, the two girls and Riko's parents were heading inside, until Riko noticed some ancient looking ruins. Nobody was there, so, without anyone noticing, she decided to run to them. After all, if she went into the pyramid the rest of the people might try to take her sceptre. It w_as _special…

Riko ran off towards the ruins, deciding to sit down and examine her sceptre. She was already tired since she had sprinted, plus the ruins were further away that she had thought.

"Just what is this…?" Riko asked herself, seeing her reflection in the green spherical jewel. She then saw it… change. It changed right before her eyes, fading from herself to someone else. Short black spiky hair with red parts swept out. She worse a golden tiara with small green jewels and a smaller tiara around her head with the same jewels. The person was tanned and had red demonic wings, eyes red and a dark green torn rag over her shoulders like a cloak.

Riko then saw her full body in her mind. She wore a golden dragon necklace and a brown tunic along with golden spikes shoulder pads, golden tooth armour and golden wrist guards. This person also wore bandages around her hands and wore brown leggings with a golden sword.

It's funny how Riko visualised this person just from looking at her face. Maybe… this was her past life? If it was… then she looked evil.

"Is that what that man told me about…?" Riko asked herself, until she was snapped out of her thoughts by the sound of a door creaking open. A door? Here? Strange…

Quickly, Riko decided to hide behind one of the small walls, crouching down and peeping up to see what was going on. She saw an Egyptian boy with stiff white hair creeping out of the underground area which she didn't know about. He was tanned and wore a long white top going right down to his ankles. He looked like he was wearing mascara or some kind of eye makeup and had purple irises. Luckily he didn't see her, but looked back at where he had come from before running off.

Riko watched him run off to some kind of town, even further away than where she had come from. She thought to go back to Sakura or follow him.

Being a curious child, she chose the second option.

The young girl went after the boy, curious of why he looked so afraid. At first she couldn't find him in the crowd, until she saw him staring at a TV. He looked fascinated. Slowly and calmly, she approached the boy who looked almost as if in a trance.

At first, Riko was shy. She didn't even know if he spoke her language. She tried to begin with a simple greeting.

"Um… Hello," Riko greeted when she was about a meter away from the boy. The boy looked at her, quietly gasping fearfully and backing away a little. "Hey, wait, I'm not gonna hurt you!"

Even with soothing words, the boy still seemed terrified.

"What's the matter? I'm not scary, am I?" Riko asked.

"N-N-No…" the boy stuttered.

"Then why are you scared?" Riko questioned.

"I-I've never been outside before…" the boy answered. "My father said i-it would distract me from my duty…"

"Duty?" Riko reacted, tilting her head curiously.

The boy looked down and rubbed his army shyly. "I-I'm supposed to be the Tomb Keeper of the Nameless Pharaoh until his spirit rests…" he explained. "Tonight I'm supposed to have the ritual performed to have the carving of the Pharaoh's memory engraved on my back…"

"Isn't that kind of… mean?" Riko queried.

"I don't even know…" the boy shivered. "I keep telling my father that I don't want him to do it… I keep telling him that I'm scared but he just won't listen!"

Riko was ultimately confused. "I don't understand. Why do you need to have this tattoo on your back?"

"It's not a tattoo, it's a carving…" the Egyptian boy corrected. "With a hot knife. I need this to show I am the Tomb Keeper who must guard the tomb until the Pharaoh's spirit returns and passes on to the afterlife."

"What would happen if your dad found you?" Riko asked curiously.

"H-He'll punish me…" the boy trembled fearfully. "I-I'm too scared to go back… I don't wanna go through the ritual! It'll hurt!"

"I'll try and hide you. Come with me!" Riko began heading back to the pyramid she came from, the boy rushing alongside her, panicking.

"Where are we going?" he asked her as he looked around, worried.

"Just come to the pyramid I was in earlier – just hide with the crowd," Riko answered. "…What's your name, anyway?"

"Marik," the boy answered. "Marik Ishtar. W-What's your name?"

"I'm Riko," Riko replied, smiling at him.

**~End of Prologue I Part I~**


	2. Prologue I: Part II

**~Prologue I: Part II~**

Riko trotted back towards the pyramid she was visiting, Marik warily following her. He really did look paranoid.

"Hey, Marik, it's okay. Nobody's gonna get you in public," Riko assured.

"My father will come after me…" Marik responded shakily. "I-I don't know how long I can hide for…"

"Just stay in the crowd," Riko repeated. "And if you do see him, look away and keep your head down."

The two then entered the pyramid, but as Marik looked back, he gasped, turning back around quickly. "H-He's there…"

"Huh?" Riko reacted, turning. She wasn't quite sure who she was meant to be looking for at first.

"The one with the purple cloak…" Marik shuddered.

Again, Riko turned around. Now she knew who to look at and found him easily. An old man with a short grey beard, a tan and purple irises, wearing a mysterious purple cloak and a hood.

"Oh…" Riko realised. "So _that's _your father…"

Marik nodded, walking deeper into the pyramid to get away secretly. Riko followed.

"Wonder where the tour group are…" Riko thought out loud. "They can't be too far… They should only be a little further ahead – come on."

Just as the two walked ahead, Marik felt someone clasp their hand on his arm tightly. He quickly turned, seeing his father there, looking very, _very _angry.

Riko saw this, gasping in shock.

"What have I told you about leaving the tomb, Marik?" Marik's father reminded, seething with anger. "Did I not tell you that it would distract you?"

Marik only shivered. "F-Father, I don't want to be the Tomb Keeper!" he cried.

"Your behaviour is atrocious! As my son, an Ishtar, you must fulfil your destiny as the next Tomb Keeper!"

"But Odion is older than me!" Marik protested. "Why can't he have the carving!"

"He is nothing but a servant to the Ishtar family!" Mr Ishtar shot back. "Only you can have it done!"

Marik pulled away harshly. "No!"

"Marik, run!" Riko yelled, grabbing him by the forearm and quickly running past Mr Ishtar. She ran as fast as she could as Marik kept looking back.

"Where are we going!" Marik asked.

"Away from your father!" Riko answered, not losing any pace.

"Why didn't we just run to the other people who were in the pyramid!"

"Because I'd have a lot of explaining to do and your father would make up some lies!"

Marik fell silent and continued to run with her, but it wasn't long before Riko was out of breath, causing her to collapse onto the floor.

"It's too hot…" Riko panted.

"Riko, get up!" Marik commanded. "Father's gonna find me!"

"How fast can an old man move?" Riko questioned.

"Please, Riko!" Marik pleaded.

Riko attempted to get up, but passed out.

…

Sakura looked around, noticing that Riko was nowhere to be seen within the pyramid. "Riko?" she called gently to not annoy anyone. Her panic level rose dramatically, sneaking away quickly.

…

Marik continuously shook Riko. As he tried to awaken her, he saw his father in the short distance, quickly hiding behind a sand dune. Thankfully his father hadn't seen him. However, he had seen Riko.

Mr Ishtar crouched beside Riko, discovering that she wasn't dead. He had his usual frown, but noticed the sceptre that the child had. He immediately recognised it. "The Millennium Sceptre…" he said quietly before standing up, walking straight towards the dune Marik was behind.

The nine year-old merely remained crouched in hope that his father wouldn't find him, but luck was not on his side, neither were the Egyptian Gods. His father grabbed him and yanked him up. "You will face major punishment for your disobedience when we return," Mr Ishtar confirmed.

"No!" Marik begged, almost ready to cry. "I don't want to be Tomb Keeper! I want to be normal like everyone else! I'll never be like you!"

Instantly Mr Ishtar hit Marik across the face. Marik held his face where he had been hit, wincing in pain. He was then grabbed by the arm as his father pulled him away.

"Riko!" Marik yelled. "Father, she's going to die!"

"She has nothing to do with you or our family!" Mr Ishtar countered, dragging Marik forcefully back towards the ruins. "You won't see her again anyway, so it won't even make a difference!"

Marik continued to resist, looking back at Riko as he was dragged away. He noticed something about her which was different. Her hair was now… shorter. Most of it was its usual black colour, but the parts at the bottom which swept out were bright red. And she seemed to have tanned pretty quickly, too. But then Marik realised that this wasn't Riko when he saw the red, demonic wings.

Riko staggered to her feet, swaying slightly, her sceptre grasped in her hand. A dark grin was painted on her face. Marik saw that her irises were no longer the bright green they once were, but that they were now scarlet red.

"Hey, old man!" the new Riko called, causing Marik's father to turn around with a face showing that he was not amused. In the blink of an eye his eyes had widened. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size!"

"Kiro…" Mr Ishtar muttered quietly. He gave Marik a sharp look. Marik shivered at his glare, but was surprised when his father let him go.

Kiro, the new Riko, grinned even more as she pointed her sceptre at Mr Ishtar. "It feels so good to be free," she announced. "Now, I'd recommend that you let the white haired kid go or I'll have to make you let him go the hard way."

"You should understand the traditional ways of the Ishtar family, Kiro!" Mr Ishtar predicted. "You're a spirit from the days of the Pharaoh!"

"Yeah, but that was like five thousand years ago…" Kiro reminded as she leaned on her sceptre casually. "So… you should probably all get a life."

"Don't be absurd!" Mr Ishtar argued. "We cannot change our ways until the spirit of the Pharaoh is at rest in the afterlife!"

"Oh, boohoo," Kiro interrupted. "Stop being so old."

Mr Ishtar was appalled by the behaviour of this girl, but quickly pulled out the whip he was hiding under his purple cloak, whipping Kiro unexpectedly. Kiro yelped and fell to the floor, her stinging whip wound bleeding. The winged girl held her injury tightly; hissing in pain as she slowly began to revert back into Riko, her hisses becoming sniffles and almost silent weeps.

"You hurt her!" Marik yelled, running to Riko. Riko was just crying softly as she held her wound, tears dropping into the sand.

The father of the soon-to-be Tomb Keeper approached the two nine-year-olds. "Get on your feet, Marik," he commanded to his son. "And Kiro reincarnate."

"Kiro…?" Riko questioned, still sniffling pathetically.

Marik shakily got to his feet, his head bowed. He said nothing.

Riko knew that Mr Ishtar meant her when he had said 'Kiro reincarnate', so staggered up to her feet, still holding her bleeding wound on her side. She winced when she stood up, still clearly in pain.

Mr Ishtar grabbed both of them by the arm, marching straight back for the ruins.

Sakura spotted Mr Ishtar from quite a far distance, since she didn't want to walk far from crowded places. Squinting her eyes, she saw him with two children. Instantly she knew that the girl in pink was Riko, eyes widening as she gasped loudly. "Riko!"

…

Once they were back, Marik was sat on his bed, head buried in his knees. He was absolutely terrified of what was to come in a matter of hours.

Riko was sat on the floor beside his bed, back against the wall. "Why did he bring _me _here?" she asked.

"Because you're Kiro…" Marik muffled, his head still in his knees.

"Who is Kiro, anyway?" Riko questioned.

"Kiro was a demon during the reign of the Pharaoh…" Marik explained, lifting his head from his knees slightly. "I think at first she was normal, but I don't know her full story… Even if I did I can't be bothered to think about it right now!"

"…Sorry," Riko apologized.

Again, Marik buried his face into his knees. "I'm scared…" he sniffled. "And to make things worse I'm going to face punishment right after the ritual…"

"Maybe I can let Kira out again!" Riko planned.

"It's Kiro," Marik corrected. "But maybe that's what my father wants… Maybe… maybe he wants to kill you…"

"That's illegal!" Riko argued, shocked.

"Illegal?" Marik repeated. "What do you mean?"

"It's against the law!" Riko described. "He'll get arrested!"

"Maybe the laws of the surface are different to the laws of the Ishtar family…" Marik sighed. "Your laws sound better…"

Riko then exhaled. "If only we had run into the pyramid rather than out…" she admitted guiltily.

Marik gave her a certain look, lifting his head from his knees. "Now you admit it," he responded. "If we had run inside we probably would have been safe…"

"I panicked, alright?" Riko excused, gritting her teeth as she glared at him.

"Oh, you're the one panicking when I'm the one here dreading having the Pharaoh's memory carved into my back with a burning hot knife!" Marik snapped. "And after that I'll have to face being whipped!"

"I-I'm sorry…" Riko shivered, hugging her knees to her chest as she sat with her back against the wall on the floor. "…At least you're probably not going to die…"

Marik blinked in realisation, a look of sympathy on his face. "Y-You can get away, though… He's not your father… You have someone to run to… A nice family…"

"I'll feel guilty knowing that I'm allowing someone my age to be hurt…" Riko responded honestly. "Knowing that I could've helped them."

"But you _can't_ help me," Marik corrected again. "Just go, Riko. Go while you can!"

Hesitantly, Riko got onto her feet. "Y-You're going to get hurt…" she reminded.

"You're going to get killed," Marik compared. "Just go! Now!"

Riko began heading to the exit, approaching the stairs, but was spotted by Mr Ishtar.

"And where do you think you're going?" he questioned. Riko froze in her steps, eyes shrinking in fear.

Mr Ishtar whipped her leg, causing the girl to collapse, holding her wound. "Ow!" she yelped, tears welling in her eyes, some escaping and rolling down her cheek. She was then pulled back down the stairs by the arm, being chucked back into the room Marik was in.

"Stay," Mr Ishtar commanded before walking away with her sceptre.

Riko was weeping in her hands softly, afraid. She wanted to unleash Kiro again to help her get away, helping Marik too, but she didn't know how to.

…

Outside, night had fallen. Sakura and Riko's parents were being aided by the local police as they searched around any possible area Riko could have disappeared to.

"Riko!" Riko's father shouted. "Sweetheart!"

As her father yelled and her mother let tears of worry fall, her best friend and sister, Sakura, was in deep thought as she wandered. As the adults were not paying attention to her, explaining everything that happened before Riko's disappearance as they walked, Sakura decided to sneak off. She was heading to the place they were at earlier with the pyramid. That's when she spotted the ruins.

…

"No! Please, no!" Marik begged as his father dragged him by the neck of his clothing. He looked back at Riko, shouting, "Save yourself"

"I can't!" Riko shouted back, her hands and ankles having been tied together. She was shuffling and squirming to try and get them off, but it was no use. She heard Marik's pleas echo from where he had gone to, crying, until he was soon screaming in utter agony. Riko could only listen, flinching as she felt his pain.

Marik's father was using a knife, which he had heated on a candle flame, to carve in the memory onto the soon-to-be Tomb Keeper's back. Marik was screaming as loud as he could, finding the pain unbearable. It wasn't just the knife's sharp blade that hurt him; it was also the heat burning his flesh. The cutting felt like the knife was getting deeper into his skin and the burning felt like fire was dripping down his wounds. This was a perfect example of torture.

It seemed like forever until the ritual was finally over. Riko peered up at the sound of the silence, until seeing Marik no longer wearing his long tunic around three minutes later. He was bandaged up and was teary, looking weak as if he was about to fall over at any minute. His eyes gazed at the floor as he shuffled, falling stomach-first onto his bed once he got there.

"M-Marik… are you alright?" Riko asked him in a horrified voice.

"No!" Marik yelled angrily as a response before calming down again. "It really hurt… It still does… I can't bear it…"

Mr Ishtar then entered the room, grabbing Riko and holding her up against the wall, the Millennium Rod's knife end pointed over her heart.

"Father, no!" Marik pleaded. "Don't hurt her too!"

"She must die, Marik. She is the reincarnation of Kiro!" Mr Ishtar responded. "Now shut up! I'll deal with you and Odion afterwards."

"Odion too?" Marik questioned. "But father, Odion had nothing to-"

"I said be quiet!" Mr Ishtar repeated harshly, his eyes not leaving Riko. He was getting ready to plunge the rod through her chest, Riko crying and screaming as Marik watched in horror, until suddenly Marik just… got onto his feet. He didn't look as weary as he did before and he was grinning, not looking like he was in pain nor worried about Riko. His hair, however, was much wilder somehow.

Marik walked over to his father slowly yet casually. His father looked back at him with an angry and confused expression. "Marik, if you try to interfere you shall receive a worse punishment than you're already going to get!" he warned. Of course, Marik didn't seem at all phased by this threat, punching his father in the gut. This was quite a shock to Mr Ishtar as he gasped for air, winded, caught off guard when Marik snatched the rod from him.

"Marik… you fool! Hand that back at once…!" Mr Ishtar commanded.

"I'd rather not," Marik replied. He then menacingly grinned and stabbed his father deep in the chest. Mr Ishtar was making choking and gargling sounds until Marik continued. He stabbed him more and more with nothing but a grin on his face, leaving Riko in shock as she could only sit there, watching. That was when she heard a voice and several hard thuds.

"_Riko! Riko, are you down there!"_

"Sakura! I'm down here!" Riko screamed as loud as she could, recognising the sound of her sister's voice.

Sakura kicked the door hard repeatedly, until finally managing to get inside, running down the steps. "Riko!" she yelled, until stopping. She saw Marik by the dead body of his own father.

"Sakura!" Riko shouted happily. Sakura quickly turned her attention to her and untied her, hugging her tightly.

"Riko, we thought you were gone forever," Sakura muffled. "Come on, we've gotta get out of here. I'll tell the police what happened."

"No," Riko reacted. "This place needs to be kept as a secret."

"There's a dead guy here!" Sakura argued.

"What… have I… done…?" Marik's wavering voice asked. Riko looked over at him.

"…Marik? Y-You…" Riko tried to explain.

"Did I do this?" Marik asked in shock. "Did I… murder my father?"

"No," came Odion's voice as he entered the room. "…The Pharaoh did it. He has returned."

Marik screamed in anger as he fell to his knees.

"You should probably leave," Odion said to the two girls. "And tell no one of this place."

"…Right," Sakura responded, not knowing what else to say. "Come on, Riko."

Riko, after reclaiming her sceptre, followed Sakura up the stairs, looking back at Marik once before leaving for good.

**~End of Chapter~**

**(PS I had serious writer's block so I know the end is crappy. This story is probably gonna go down the crapper…)**


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